blue

Good gig last night. It was a biker bar that has a crowd that's not really there for live music and difficult to engage. However last night being the first day we have had nice weather (80 degrees and sunny)the crowd was larger than usual and more responsive. Got home by 1:30. Now it's time to shower and head out to our 3-7 gig today. Blue

He's on that very short list of once in a life time performers. Blue

[quote name='bumnote' timestamp='1430423052' post='2761374'] In my twilight years I would rather go and actually see someone and risk being disapointed than not go and regret it afterwards [/quote] Exactly, I'm going to see The Stones in an unbelievably small venue ( Marcus Amphitheater, Milwaukee) in June. Artists like The Stones & Paul, they don't disappoint. They know better then anyone what people are coming to see and why. They will know before we do when it's time to stop. Blue

[quote name='The Admiral' timestamp='1430416383' post='2761262'] Simply put, I have the offer of 2 tickets to see Paul McCartney at the NEC - eigth row, and at face value - but, that £240 ish quid for 2 tickets and Mrs A isnt a fan, as she's still not forgiven him for marrying again so quickly after Linda died. Not that she's a massive Linda fan, but she felt it was too soon and disrespectful, given his protestations about the love of his life. She also thinks his voice is shot, and it's too late now to see him live, as he's just past it. That said, she's willing to go, as she knows I'd simply like to see him in the flesh, before it's too late. Anybody seen him live recently? Can he still cut it, or am I going to spend a lot of wedge and come away dissapointed? All thoughts greatly appreciated as I need to say yes or no tonight to the guy offering them up! [/quote] I have been following Paul"s career since 1963. Take the tickets or you'll regret it. I saw him recently, his voice is not shot he's in top form, no one in the business puts on a better show and his band is unbelievable. And you can tell he's having fun and loves performing. There was no introduction, they just walk out on stage unannounced and they start playing. When he played Miller Park a concession worker said he was there at 6:00AM and rehearsed the whole show. By the way, he doesn't use IEM. Blue

[quote name='crez5150' timestamp='1430411674' post='2761192'] Not a defined tribute as such but we push out as a tribute to a genre. [url="http://youtu.be/yhUxGL0OcT8"]http://youtu.be/yhUxGL0OcT8[/url] [/quote] Nice promo video! Blue

Just wanted to mention that Church Festivals are huge here in Milwaukee and pay very well. Thing is one or two of the major agencies control all that business. If your band has no representation, I wouldn't waste your time trying to get in. Blue

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1430379902' post='2760737'] Deps are a fact fo life, IMO and good players are invaribly busy so sometimes it can be a case of if you want that player, you have to accept he'll have other commitments and if they are full time, more important payers or 'clients'. [/quote] Then I would say if the band is gigging 4-6 times a month I'd pass on that higher caliber player and go with someone that can committ to the bands schedule. Were dealing with a few bookings where we need a sub. I don't like it and it's a big pain in the arse. But that's just me.😀 Blue

[quote name='krispn' timestamp='1430380897' post='2760745'] I auditioned for a band recently - an established one- and in our pre audition chat I asked what they were looking for in a new member. The wanted someone who could play solidly, not the greatest layer ever but who could adapt to the tune. I also asked about stage craft. Did they have certain things they liked to do on certain tunes, did they dress a certain way gigs or particular venues? If you ask these questions early on in the process they can be fine tuned in person. A wedding band might well dress smart for their gigs, a rock covers band could be a jeans and tee shirt gig. Ask as many questions at the application stage so once the audition comes your prepared. I'd a drummer show up to an audition late and after the inevitable phone calls to find out where he was and give directions he got out of his car and said "I shouldn't really apologise for being late its a hard place to find!" My response was "It's my first time at this rehearsal room too and I made it on time. You have 15 minutes left of your slot before the next person gets here. Still wanna play or would you like to leave?" He played one song with us and then I sent him packing. Tardy is not an attractive quality! [/quote] Yes, and if you know your poor with directions,your GPS is unreliable and your unfamiliar with area the audition is, it might be a good idea to drive there the day before the audition. For me with 2 large GK cabs, wireless and full pedal board I always allow for 15-20 minutes to set up. Blue

[quote name='peteb' timestamp='1430378786' post='2760719'] It's just a situation that you have to manage if you want to attract the right players. I am currently in 3 bands (2 of which don't gig that regularly). There has not been any major problems with this until the coming weekend when I was double booked and can't do a blues gig at a festival in Scotland. We had a dep sorted out and unfortunately he managed to injure his hand and can't do the gig, hence a load of scrabbling around until they could find a guy playing at the same festival who is happy to put in a double shift! The guitarist in that band (who is a top player and makes the band) is also in 3 bands and likewise they book gigs around his diary and when he can get reps for his other bands. Generally there are no insurmountable problems, but occasionally something out of the blue can happen. Let's face it, if I was doing the gig and got injured I would have to pull out at the last moment, just like the dep. [/quote] Got it. However my example or scenario is when someone is in 2 bands both gigging 4-6 times a month. I have seen this and with most gigs occurring on Friday & Saturday night it's very problematic. Blue

I only know Behringer as a provider of inexpensive low end gear. However that was many years ago (early 2000s). Blue

You will heal, there are worse and more permanent injuries you could have sustained. I have a buddy that will never play again. Blue.

There's another position I take when it comes to choosing a new band member in an established gigging band. Let's say a band that's gigging 4-6 times. If you pick someone that is in another band it will cause and there will be scheduling conflicts. And scheduling conflicts means one of the bands is going to lose $$$. All bands do not have the resources to bring in a sub. Also, when auditioning or getting an offer to join I would want to know if any other members were in other working bands. If there were, that would probably be a deal breaker for me. Blue

[quote name='TheRev' timestamp='1430343534' post='2760592'] We've got loads on this year: Cursus cider & music festival Welsh Perry & cider festival Weymouth Quayside music festival Wimborne folk festival Boomtown fair Tolpuddle Martyrs fair Jusassic Rocks festival OutCider festival Great Dorset Steam Fair Last of the summer cider music festival There's also a handful of little cider festivals, VeeDub, scooter and Harley-Davidson rallies. We're going to be busy boys.... [/quote] We sent out promo kits to all the Harley Davidson dealerships in the Milwaukee area. They host rallies and parties all summer. Were in the process of nailing down the details on one Harley opportunity. Harley Davidson is Headquartered here in Milwaukee. Blue

When a band is auditioning musicians a lot depends on what your offering and the size of the market. It takes a real compelling story and $$$ to attract the higher caliber players Blue

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1430336225' post='2760494'] Nah, nothing doing. Applied to a couple but never heard anything back. They're announcing bands now, so I guess we're out in the cold this year. Still, just recorded some decent demos so hopefully they'll shake free some opportunities. [/quote] Your not alone. We had a couple of fairs that we have played annually ignore us this year. I understand 1 of them is going the route of looking for bands that will perform for free, Good luck with that. Blue

I know festivals and fairs are not prominent everywhere in the States.I just happen to be in Milwuakee WI also known as The City Of Festivals. Are certain regions in the UK better for Festivals & Fairs than others? Blue

[quote name='JamPlay' timestamp='1430303460' post='2759972'] The role of bassist is hugely misunderstood, often overlooked, [/quote] Thats why I never stand back stage by the drummer. Blue

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1430319908' post='2760248'] Dick Venom & The Terrortones have a whole bunch of festival dates coming up: [url="http://www.puzzlehall.com"]Saturday 2nd May: Puzzlefest Weekender, Puzzle Hall Inn, Sowerby Bridge[/url] [url="http://www.strummercampfestival.co.uk"]Friday 22nd May: Strummercamp Festival, Manchester Rugby Club[/url] [url="https://www.facebook.com/events/854544004588079/"]Friday 29th May: Alice’s Wicked Tea Party, Lytchett Matravers, Dorset[/url] [url="http://jsouthgat7.wix.com/deerstock"]Friday 24th July: Deerstock Festival, Newton Cross Country Course, Nottinghamshire[/url] [url="http://www.outciderfestival.co.uk"]Saturday 1st August: Outcider Festival, Fernhill Farm, Compton Martin, Somerset[/url] [/quote] WOW! Nice bookings Blue

Just found out yesterday we are booked for Summerfest ( 4th year for me). We will play the Johnson Controls World Sound Stage on Friday June 26 at 2:00. That's a good time slot especially since it's a Friday. As soon as we finish were off to Oconomowoc to play The Stone Bank Rock Fest with a 6:00 start time. A busy day for the band. [size=4][font=Arial][b]*Summerfest[/b] (also known as "The Big Gig") is a yearly music festival held at the 75-acre (30-hectare) [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Maier_Festival_Park"][font=Arial]Henry Maier Festival Park[/font][/url][font=Arial] along the [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Michigan"][font=Arial]lakefront[/font][/url][font=Arial] in [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee"][font=Arial]Milwaukee[/font][/url][font=Arial], [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisconsin"][font=Arial]Wisconsin[/font][/url][font=Arial], in the [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States"][font=Arial]United States[/font][/url][font=Arial]. The festival lasts for 11 days, is made up of 11 stages with performances from over 700 bands, and since the mid-1970s has run from late June through early July, usually including the [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence_Day_%28United_States%29"][font=Arial]4th of July[/font][/url][font=Arial] holiday.[sup][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summerfest#cite_note-1"][1][/url][/sup] Summerfest attracts between 800,000 and 1,000,000 people each year, promoting itself as "The World's Largest [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_Festival"][font=Arial]Music Festival[/font][/url][font=Arial]", a title certified by the [/font][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinness_World_Records"][font=Arial]Guinness World Records[/font][/url][font=Arial] since 1999.[sup][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summerfest#cite_note-2"][2][/url][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summerfest#cite_note-3"][3][/url][/sup][/font] Performing and Recording Artists make personal appearances on 11 sponsor-themed stages throughout the grounds from noon to midnight, including the 23,000-capacity [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Amphitheater"]Marcus Amphitheater[/url]. All shows are free with an admission ticket, with the exception of headlining acts at the Marcus Amphitheater. Admission is between US$11 and US$18, depending on the time of day. There are numerous promotions for discounted or free admission.[sup][url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summerfest#cite_note-4"][4][/url][/sup] [sup]Blue[/sup][/size]

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1430304521' post='2759995'] Assume these are paid...? [/quote] Yes, for us about the same or a little more than our 4 hour bar gigs. These are nice gigs because we only have to perform for 1.5 hours and nice backline. Blue

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1430303030' post='2759966'] I'm not sure what people are after and what they offer in return so I'd put the playing first, and then decide if they are heading to a place where you want to go... If we are talking about an income of £400 per month, then that would be easy to get close to with many bands ... So I think the final arbiter is how well you play their stuff. If you were generally personable then you'd have a shot, Any band that goes to image before anything else, I wouldn't be bothered with, tbh.. Style over substance ..?? no..!! [/quote] I don't think any of us can go wrong putting playing first. However, even some good bands are not good at the audition process or making a decision. I lost an opportunity to a guy that came to the audition unprepared. He didn't know the material. He was a friend of the guitarist. Blue

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1430309652' post='2760086'] I'd rather have it that way than have a show that is dependent on an image. We know we are a decent band and we'll live or die on that. We don't struggle for money for gigs and we don't have to travel far either. Our 'image' is low key, and it doesn't come first. We can sell 350 tickets...if we really really have to ..so we know our model works. No delusion on our part and we aren't trying to make it either... it is just a viable band. [/quote] I would say "low key" is an image. It may be subtle but it sounds like your doing it right. Blue

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1430302498' post='2759959'] But it isn't me so unless we were talking fab money, status, Great gig etc etc, I'd pass on it. [/quote] What lengths we'll go through or hoops we will jump through depends on how bad we want to win an opportunity. Blue

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1429955855' post='2756629'] I don't hate any numbers. The numbers I like best are the ones that audiences like and, secondly, that the band plays well. I shuddered when they decided to put Tainted Love in the cover band set, until I saw the audience reaction from nearly every gig. I understand that guys doing this for a hobby can view things differently but there really are no bad songs out there. [/quote] Agreed, I'm not a hobbiest. I play music for a living. I lost The mind set regarding not enjoying playing certain songs a long time ago. If it goes over with the audience I'm good. Blue

[quote name='scoobystig' timestamp='1430255325' post='2759647'] Old town festival - town gardens, Swindon Saturday 13th june Chippenham beer and cider festival - chippenham Saturday August 1st Not massive events, but just nice to play somewhere where there is a happy crowd and a decent sound man (hopefully on both counts) [/quote] Nice, and I know what you mean. It will be nice get away from the bar gigs and playing outside to festival crowds and for me it's going from 4 hours to 1.5. Blue